49ers Roster Cuts: What to do With 3 of Their Injured Players

There are three injured players that the 49ers have to figure out what they will designate them with final roster cuts approaching.

Aug 10, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Kalia Davis (93) rushes the quarterback against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports / Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports

Final roster cuts are quickly approaching for the San Francisco 49ers. They have already trimmed down the roster a bit with a handful of players already released or waived.

Still, there is a lot more work to be done with a lot more difficult decisions to be made. Some of those difficult decisions reside with three of their severely injured players. Those players are defensive tackle Kalia Davis (knee), offensive lineman Jon Feliciano (knee), and cornerback Ambry Thomas (forearm).

49ers Roster Cuts: What to do With 3 of Their Injured Players

What the 49ers will do with Davis and Feliciano will be different than with Thomas. For Davis and Feliciano, the most likely decision that the 49ers make on them is placing them on Injured Reserve. Both players suffered unspecified knee injuries that required surgery. The 49ers will not be expecting them back until mid-season.

As a result, Injured Reserve is the likely course of action. However, the 49ers will do so with a designation to return. Thanks to the new rules, teams can now designate two players to return from Injured Reserve on cutdown day. Any more than that or not placing the designation will automatically rule out the respective player's season.

With the designation for return, the 49ers will be using two of their eight allowed Injured Reserve returns during the season. A big decision for them to make, but one that makes a lot of sense for them to do. As for Thomas, he is a tricky one. There was no timetable for his return from a broken forearm as opposed to Davis and Feliciano.

Placing him on Injured Reserve will end his 2024 season. But it's tough to imagine the 49ers keeping him on the final roster. He is out of favor with Kyle Shanahan. Rookie Renardo Green and Isaac Yiadom have also buried him on the depth chart. Thomas may get waived with an injury settlement, thus ending his 49ers tenure.

It depends on how much they like him versus the others like Samuel Womack III, Darrell Luter Jr., and Rock Ya-Sin. Either way, the wind is not blowing in favor of Thomas. He may be seeing his way out of Santa Clara very soon.